Needing inspiration!!
 

I have been dieting my whole life. Food for me is an obsession. I get into it for a while and think that I am finally going to stay on this so called "lifestyle change" but I always fall off the wagon. I am soooooooooo mad at myself. Whenever I am stressed I eat. It is a source of comfort for me. I know everything there is about weight loss but I can't stop eating like crap. Inspire me please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You sound just like me! I just posted something very similar, looking for ways to end the mental sabotages that destroys my efforts to lose weight every single time. I also eat food for comfort, but sometimes I don't even like the stuff I find myself eating for comfort...it's grossly sweet or fatty. It really is bad for me and I am ready to just give it up! Maybe we can help each other.

I am thinking of things like walking on the beach in the summer as my inspiration. I don't need to be super skinny to do that, but I don't want to be the obvious fat girl anymore either! I want to be normal -sized and, even in a one-piece with a little cover-up, HOT! Okay, I'll settle for average-looking. haha. I guess that is a kind of inspiration. Imagine yourself being fat and entering a situation like sitting in a roller-coaster ride or putting on a swimsuit. Even if you aren't that heavy to worry about those things, just imagining those situations should make anyone continue to eat less crap. Good luck, I feel your pain 100% and am trying to "stay" motivated myself!

Vanem, Sherry,

I can really relate to both of you. I think I somewhat hit rock bottom a few months ago - just so completely sick and tired of being fat and feeling like crap! I like the visualization idea Sherry.

I feel 'obsessed' with food and can relate to all you say. I am trying to turn my obsession with food into an obsession with health. I have been reading books, reading online, tracking my food diligently, reading labels, trying to eat natural food, more raw food, fresh food. Eating habits are just that, habits. And habits take time to change. It is not easy..but not impossible! :)

Find comfort from other things instead of food - like hobbies, music, etc. Make a list of things you can do to provide comfort, rather than eat. Still a struggle for me, but I'm adding nurturing things into my life and have found it helps alot.

Hang in there! Other people have succeeded, and so can we. Why not us too!? :D

This is a relatable issue and very difficult to break, like any other unhealthy habit. And that is exactly what it is: a mindless habit. It may not completely go away, but you can keep it in bounds. I am currently getting in shape for a my wedding 4 months away. I have gained 25 lbs since dating my fiancee. I love to eat. I am hungry every two hours regardless of how much I ate beforehand. So I accepted that fact. I make sure I have somewhat of an idea in advance of what my meals will be later on. I pack my lunches ahead of time. I do not eat 3 large meals a day, but 5 or so portioned meals.

I replaced all regular foods I eat such as potato chips, ice cream, cake, salty foods, etc. with sugar free, fat free or reduced fat foods. Even my cottage cheese is reduced fat. Replaced the ice cream with frozen yogurt and it is better than the regular stuff. I drink diet soda. Nuts with raisins, frozen yogurt shakes with reduced fat milk are delicious. Whole grain or oat bread, and fat free cheese slices. You still get the sweet and salty but at little nutritional cost and weight gain. Also portioning is crucial. For meals I use 1 cup measuring for portions. Replace butter with Pam for cooking and use Smart Balance butter or spray butter to reduce saturated fats. Chicken breast grilled or baked is fantastic for your body. The list can go on!

Fats, carbs and proteins are your friends but the RIGHT ones only. With these foods you can eat more and be healthy than you could with unhealthy foods so you won't starve and you CAN snack. I exercise 3 to 4 times a week. Lite weight lifting at high repetitions first, then 40 minutes of cardio; split with 20 mins on elliptical and 20 on stationary bike. Drink as much water as you can stomach. In one week doing this I dropped 5 lbs. Those who are obese will drop more faster until they too reach a plateau.
This does not mean you cannot have the occasional burger with fries or a slice of cake. It DOES mean not eating mainly junk food. Take it slow. Only expect 1 to 2 lbs a week or 5 lbs a month. Do not seek 20 lbs in a month to melt off your body. My fiancee says he can either do an hour in the gym or just not drink that mountain dew. Keep yourself busy, enjoy trying new things, be adventurous but keep in mind that healthy is not boring or tasteless.

Well said Aubbie!!!

We each have to find our own way to do this. There is no one 'right' way or 'wrong' way. And the fact is, nobody can do this for us (unfortunately!) :) And even though we can educate ourselves about nutrition and lean on others for support and inspiration-at the end of the day it is up to us alone. We are responsible for the choices we make and we have to take that responsibility for ourselves. If we are stuck in a rut, we need to figure out how to get out. Start with small changes. We deserve to be healthy, to be fit and to feel good! :)

Something that helps keep me motivated, as if the looming wedding for myself isn't enough, is seeing the look on my doctor's face when she realizes how much weight I've lost since I last saw her. Or the fact that my extended family have no idea what I'm up so, so the next time they see me in the Holidays, I'm expecting to see a lot of surprised faced. I don't care what they think about me, but I love surprising people, and this is an awesome way to surprise folks.

Also, take advantage of Amazon's $5 music specials - if you don't have an MP3 player, that's ok - just download to your computer. You can get a lot of great mainstream stuff for $5. I bought an album of an old 80s-90s band that I loved - $5 for 20 songs. Their greatest hits album. It's a great way to add to your gym music playlist, or for the motivation to keep pushing through.

Has anyone heard of the beck diet solution? It uses cognitive therapy to change eating habits. I think it's worth a look, it was created by the pioneer of cognitive psychology, Aaron T. Beck, and his daughter.

Vanem, I could have written your post myself. I am also food obsessed and I am so sick of spending every waking moment thinking about my weight. I was doing very well this time last year. I was fit, able to run 5k, only 35 pounds away from my goal and then somehow I fell off the wagon and the weight crept back on. I was in a fog of denial, overeating every day for months and months until finally on January 25th I decided to break through the cloud of denial when I realized that I had not one single pair of pants or jeans that were comfortable and I got on the scale. To my horror I had gained back 27 pounds.

My father is terminally ill and near the end of his life. It breaks my heart like nothing in my life ever has. I am in so much emotional pain, that I think I fell back into these bad old habits because it covers up the harder stuff to deal with. Beating myself up about my weight occupies so much space in my head and feeling down about my weight is a pain that I am used to. I think I was subconsciously driven to make my life all about my weight again because it is just easier to deal with than my current reality. Every pound gained is a pound of pain... but the sad fact is, no amount of sugar or fat can erase my true emotions. It's just a fleeting distraction. Real life always creeps back in. So now I have my dad's illness breaking my heart and I feel like crap to boot.

The good news is in the past 4 weeks I have lost 10 pounds of the 27 that I gained. My motivation is simple, I have to do this for my health and I owe it to my dad to truly value this life that I am living. I have given up sugar. For me, it eliminates the cravings and helps so much with the mood swings. It's amazing how much less I crave sugar now that it is gone from my diet.

You got some great advice here from the other posters regarding nutrition. I am looking into signing up and training for a 5k run. I feel like that gives me a goal to work towards that is healthy. Instead of saying that I am going to lose 20 pounds by June 1st, I am going to make running 5k my goal. Whatever weight I lose in the process will be fantastic and I will be happy about it. I don't want to set weight goals that I could potentially fail.

Thanks Everyone for the great advice. I'm so glad I read this thread this morning. Happy Thursday! :)

Your approach to the 5K run is fantastic. No weight set, no pass/fail; just the run. And God bless you and your father.